Fibroblast-specific expression of AC6 enhances beta-adrenergic and prostacyclin signaling and blunts bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis.

Pulmonary fibroblasts regulate extracellular matrix production and degradation and are critical in maintenance of lung structure, function, and repair, but they also play a central role in lung fibrosis. cAMP-elevating agents inhibit cytokine- and growth factor-stimulated myofibroblast differentiation and collagen synthesis in pulmonary fibroblasts. In the present study, we overexpressed adenylyl cyclase 6 (AC6) in pulmonary fibroblasts and measured cAMP production and collagen synthesis.

The C1 and C2 domains target human type 6 adenylyl cyclase to lipid rafts and caveolae.

Previous data has shown that adenylyl cyclase type 6 (AC6) is expressed principally in lipid rafts or caveolae of cardiac myocytes and other cell types while certain other isoforms of AC are excluded from these microdomains. The mechanism by which AC6 is localized to lipid rafts or caveolae is unknown. In this study, we show AC6 is localized in lipid rafts of COS-7 cells (expressing caveolin-1) and in HEK-293 cells or cardiac fibroblasts isolated from caveolin-1 knock-out mice (both of which lack prototypical caveolins).

Adenylyl cyclase type 6 overexpression selectively enhances beta-adrenergic and prostacyclin receptor-mediated inhibition of cardiac fibroblast function because of colocalization in lipid rafts.

Cardiac fibroblasts produce and degrade extracellular matrix and are critical in regulating cardiac remodeling and hypertrophy. Fibroblasts are activated by factors such as transforming growth factor beta and inhibited by agents that elevate 3',5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels. cAMP signal generation and response is known to be compartmentalized in many cell types in part through the colocalization of receptors and specific adenylyl cyclase isoforms in lipid rafts and caveolae.